Inspired by Saturne (Remix) | Freaky Little Things

Plain quiches (with only the traditional “appareil à crème prise”) are a like Saturn withouth Youan’s remix, boring…! The Freaky Little Things were saved by him (and thanks to him were featured on i-D mag‘s SoundCloud playlist)…me… I was saved by beautiful green aspargus. This is totally the season and we see them everywhere, so go for it!

| Ingredients |

Brisée Pie Crust

_ 250g of flour

_ 125g of unsalted butter

_ 50ml of cold water

_ 5g of fine salt

_ 1 free range egg yolk 

Filling

_ 150ml of milk

_ 150ml of double cream

_ 4 free range eggs (2 whole, 2 yolks)

Garnish

_ a bunch of green asparagus  

_ 100g of grated emmental

| Method |

Start by cleaning and blanching your asparagus. To do so, get them in salted boiling water for 4 minutes. Cool them in iced water to stop cooking and cut about 1 to 2 cm from the bottom tip (throw it out, as the texture is not very nice). Put aside.

Then, let’s start the pie crust. Bare in mind that the secret to a successful pie crust is to not overwork it with your hands. Mix the flour and the butter (cut into small cubes) as if you were making a crumble dough. Place it “en fontaine” (like a little well of dough) and add the yolk, water and salt in the middle. Mix it well until the you obtain an homogenous pie dough ball. Now film it and place it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

While the dough rests, pre-heat your oven to 180° and start to work on the filling. It’s a real classic of french cuisine, and it’s rather simple to do : whisk the mil, cream, eggs, yolks, some salt and pepper & voilà.

Get the pastry dough out of the fridge and use a pastry roll (or a clean glass bottle) with some extra flour (no excess) to match your pie pan shape. I recommend using baking paper before placing it in the pan, as it will make your life much easier (to get the pie out of it, and to clean it…). Now place your blanched asparagus whole or cut, as you prefer, then the filling and to finish, the emmental. Into the oven! Now the baking time will depend on your oven’s power… let’s say 25 minutes, take out the pan / baking paper to let the pie crust fully color around, add a couple minutes more, and you should be done.

Serve with a lightly seasoned salad (lemon, olive oil, salt) & have fun in the sun!